The present invention generally relates to telecommunications and more specifically to a system and method for managing instant message communications.
With the advent of the Internet, users have been provided with a faster electronic means of communicating with each other. For example, instant messaging allows users to interact in real-time communications through networks such as the Internet.
Unfortunately, with the advent of new communication methods associated with the Internet, spam has proliferated with the ease of use of these new methods of communication. Spam on IM networks is the unauthorized sending of messages to an instant message screen name. When a spam message is sent to an IM screen name, an IM window is created on a user's screen as a pop-up window. The pop-up window typically includes the message from the spammer, such as any objectionable content, an advertisement, etc. The pop-up window cannot be avoided as it takes up visible (and valuable) screen real estate. A user typically has to respond to the pop-up window by minimizing it, closing it, or responding to the spammer. Unlike email, which allows a user to deal with the spam at another time, the user is interrupted when IM spam is received. A popular new shorthand for IM spam is “spIM” (or “spim”, or SpIM, etc.).
IM clients allow a user to block anyone not on their “buddy list” from contacting them. A buddy list may be any list of contacts. This effectively eliminates spam in that people not on the user's buddy list cannot contact the user. Blocking all users not on their buddy list, however, imposes a big limitation on an IM user. For example, friends of the user cannot contact the user without first being on the user's buddy list. Additionally, acquaintances or people that user may want to receive an IM from cannot IM with the user until the user puts them on his or her buddy list.